<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Promise for the White Lilies by carsinoska</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27200552">Promise for the White Lilies</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/carsinoska/pseuds/carsinoska'>carsinoska</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Ensemble Stars! (Video Game)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Medieval, Historical Inaccuracy, M/M, very loose setting.</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-10-26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 17:34:41</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,254</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27200552</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/carsinoska/pseuds/carsinoska</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Kuro is the knight of Shu, the second prince. Shu gets a marriage proposal from the prince of the neighbouring kingdom, a certain Tenshouin Eichi. Neither Shu nor Kuro are particularly happy about this for various reasons.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Itsuki Shuu/Kiryuu Kurou</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>18</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Promise for the White Lilies</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>A strange setting where same-sex marriage is allowed and the right to throne is passed down direct descendants regardless of gender. Where Kuro and Shu keep their childhood nicknames for each other and, well. It is a medieval setting only in the broadest of terms.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“No! I don’t wanna go. I’ll die of loneliness! Is that what you want?!”</p><p>“Icchan, you won’t die of loneliness. Idiot.”</p><p>“I will! You’re the idiot, Ryuukun!!”</p><p>“What?! You… Fine, what if I promise you that I’ll...” </p><p><br/>
</p>
<hr/><p><br/>
</p><p>...Huh. A dream about the past. Well, it wasn’t like Kuro didn’t think about Shu often. That was kind of, you know, his job as his knight.</p><p>Speaking of which, he had to go wake him up. The job was something more suited for a house servant, but Shu had kicked up a fuss about it and so the responsibility ended up falling onto Kuro’s shoulders.</p><p>“Rise and shine, prince,” Kuro said as he peeled away the covers.</p><p>“Nn… No…” Shu curled into himself in an attempt to salvage the last vestiges of warmth.</p><p>Kuro sighed. Usually Shu got out of bed like clockwork and he just came by to escort Shu throughout the day. If he didn’t, that was a sure sign that something was bothering him.</p><p>He hadn’t changed since he was small.</p><p>“Icchan?” he whispered. </p><p>“What, Ryuukun?” Shu said, blearily wiping his eyes.</p><p>“It’s time to get up.”</p><p>Rolling over with his back facing Kuro, he said, “I don’t wanna…”</p><p>Kuro smiled. Shu often acted like a spoiled brat in many ways, but it was rare to see him so honest. He didn’t know when, but somewhere along the line Shu changed. He stopped being the crybaby Icchan and started putting on a cold façade. It was nostalgic to see him act like in their childhood. Still, he <i>did</i> need him to wake up. He slowly tried to coax him out of bed by sitting him upright and throughout it all, Shu clung to him like a leech.</p><p>“My parents requested an audience with me today,” Shu finally admitted. Right into Kuro’s ear. His heart almost shot out of his chest, and it took him a moment to digest what Shu actually said.</p><p>“Oh, huh… Don’t they always ignore you?” he asked. That was probably why he was so slow to get out of bed.</p><p>“Mm,” Shu confirmed wordlessly. After that, it seemed like he finally woke up since he unraveled himself from Kuro and began to choose his clothes for the day.</p><p><br/>
</p>
<hr/><p><br/>
</p><p>Kuro followed Shu into the throne room. They barely visited this room, since Shu hated talking to his family. This was definitely going to be about something troublesome, Kuro thought.</p><p>“Mother, Father,” Shu greeted. Kuro wordlessly bowed his head down in greeting as well.</p><p>“Shu, we have something important to discuss with you,” his mother said.</p><p>Next to him, Shu’s face blanched. It was at this point that Kuro looked up and saw not only the King and Queen, but also the heir to the Tenshouin family, a certain Tenshouin Eichi. Definitely not someone he expected to see there. While the two families were on good terms with each other, Shu and Eichi certainly weren’t. Well, it was more correct to say that Shu hated Eichi’s guts. As the Itsukis’ land and the Tenshouins’ bordered each other, the two had been acquainted since a young age. </p><p>Before Kuro officially became Shu’s knight, Shu had spent several summers in the Tenshouin kingdom in order to improve political relationships. Shu would come home crying to him about the pranks that the other boy played on him. As they got older, Shu’s fear of Eichi slowly evolved into hatred towards him. Even now, Kuro wasn’t too familiar with all the details, but Eichi was one of the few people Shu truly hated with all of his life.</p><p>Basically: there was no good news if the Tenshouin heir was here.</p><p>“Hi Shu!” Eichi said with a happy little wave. Shu simultaneously looked like he was going to kill someone and like he was going to faint, somehow.</p><p>“As you can see, Prince Eichi has something to say,” said the king.</p><p>“Thank you, King. Well, I’ll get right to the point. Itsuki Shu. I, Tenshouin Eichi, heir to the Tenshouin kingdom, would like to ask for your hand in marriage.”</p><p>“...!” Shu’s face quickly became red with indignity. Only because he was in front of his parents was he able to reign in his words. Otherwise, Kuro was pretty sure he’d start mouthing off profanities, status be damned.</p><p>“Mother, Father, did you know about this…!”</p><p>“Of course, Prince Eichi came to seek our approval first.” </p><p>In terms of politics, it wasn’t an outrageous proposal. The marriage would help keep the alliance between the two kingdoms strong. Shu was the third child of the Itsukis, so this was his chance to rule on the throne. There didn’t seem to be much reason apart from that. That said, political grounds were more than enough reason for a proposal.</p><p>Shu was quiet for a long time, trying to collect himself. Finally, he cleared his throat and said, “Unfortunately, I will have to refuse.” Usually he was much more eloquent, but Eichi had that effect on him.</p><p>Eichi didn’t seem upset or disappointed with Shu’s rejection at all. If anything, he seemed to be even happier than before. Weird guy, Kuro thought. It was obvious why someone like him made Shu so uncomfortable.</p><p>It was his father who said, “Shu, please reconsider.”</p><p>Shu shook his head and looked to the ground. His face was pale as a sheet and Kuro was worried he might collapse at any second. “No, Father. I… I…” Then, without another word, Shu fled the throne room.</p><p>“Prince…!” Kuro called out. He gave quick apologies to everyone in the room, then chased after Shu. He quickly lost sight of him, but he probably ran off to his bedroom. Shu always sought comfort in his dolls whenever he was in a particularly bad mood. </p><p>Thankfully, he was right and Kuro found Shu huddled under his blanket. In his hand was his favourite doll with beautiful blonde ringlets. He seemed to be muttering something to it in hushed tones. So, the usual then.</p><p>Since Shu was wrapped up in his own little world, Kuro let him know of his arrival. “My prince,” he said.</p><p>“Knock first!”</p><p>Kuro ignored his complaint and sighed. “You can’t just run away from a marriage proposal like that. And from the prince of the neighbouring land, to boot.”</p><p>“I think you’ll find that I just did! Anyways, why shouldn’t I? I absolutely abhor that detestable Tenshouin! I can’t believe he had the gall to do that to me!”</p><p>“I mean yeah, I can’t really trust him with you, but I can’t do anything about that.”</p><p>Shu shook his head. “Political alliances are foolish. Why can’t marriage be solely for the sake of pure, untainted love!” </p><p>“Well, that’s kind of a lot to ask for.” Not to mention, political marriages weren’t completely useless.</p><p>“I didn’t ask you! Anyways, love should be much more sacred, something to truly be celebrated! Why ruin the sanctity of holy matrimony with something like politics…! I won’t have this. Partners should be equals, they should motivate one another with ulterior motives. Do you even understand something like that, I wonder. Well, of course not.” </p><p>Kuro kind of wanted to hit him right then. Of course he would never harm him, but that didn’t stop him from heavily side eyeing Shu. He’d probably never believe Kuro, but even he thought about love once in a while. Well, maybe more than once in a while, given that he spent his every waking moment next to the one he cared about most. </p><p>Oblivious to Kuro’s thoughts, Shu continued rambling on. “I refuse to have a loveless relationship like Mother and Father. What is the point of riches if I cannot have this one thing? Even with these feelings of mine…!” He suddenly stopped himself mid-sentence. “Ahem. In any case, I have no intentions of marrying that accursed Tenshouin.”</p><p>“I get that you don’t like him, but maybe you shouldn’t say it like that,” Kuro said coolly. Inside though, he was anything but. Damn. Shu liked someone too? Who could have possibly caught the eye of the fickle prince? He only had a handful of close acquaintances, all of whom Kuro knew of. Was it the Sakuma heir? Or maybe even that attendant of the Tenshouins? He honestly didn’t know.</p><p>“That man does not deserve my respect,” Shu replied with an upturned nose, interrupting his thoughts.</p><p>Kuro could only offer him a sheepish smile. “Sorry I couldn’t protect you again, Icchan. I can’t do anything about a marriage proposal though.”</p><p>“And who asked you to do that? Are you still trying to keep that old promise? You are my knight, and that is all. You only act as my physical shield, no? I never expected you to do anything more than that. It’s not like there aren’t other promises you didn’t keep anyways.” </p><p>...Yikes, what a low blow to his pride. But Shu was always like that - using harsh words to divert the other’s attention away from his true feelings. He wanted to believe that Shu thought more of him than just a bodyguard. In any case, what other promises did he make to him that he couldn’t fulfill? Was it the time he said he’d make him the biggest croissant in the country? Or maybe the time he said he’d accompany him in the town square in commoner disguises? No, it was probably something even more serious than that, right? Hm...</p><p>“See, you’ve forgotten about it.” Shu looked away from him and refused to make eye contact.</p><p>Maybe it was something more relevant to the situation at hand? Shit, what could it be… Apparently it was something important to Shu, if the sulking was any indication. Ugh, he sure made a lot of silly promises, didn’t he? But he was a kid, how could anyone blame him!</p><p>...Wait a second.</p><p>Amongst all of his childish declarations, there was probably only one that Shu was referring to in the moment. The first time Shu was supposed to visit the Tenshouins, he desperately clung onto Kuro’s arm, refusing to leave. With an ugly expression and overflowing tears, Shu sobbed and whined over being separated from him. At the time, the only thing Kuro could think to console him was promise him that they would always be together - that Kuro would marry him and they would never be apart.</p><p>He proposed to him.</p><p>As children though, so it wasn’t like it meant anything. Or at least that was what he assumed, since Shu never mentioned it again and then Kuro forgot about it completely.</p><p>“Er… Were you talking about the time I promised to marry you?” he asked.</p><p>Shu immediately turned to face him. “Yes, you buffoon!”</p><p>Was that a yes? “That was a yes, right?”</p><p>"How many times do I have to say it?" Despite Shu’s crossed arms and slight sound of disappointment, he failed to hide his smile and ever-reddening cheeks. </p><p>“Oh. Okay. Huh.” Kuro was definitely at a loss for words. The reason Shu brought it up must have been because he thought it was important too. But he couldn’t be too sure, so he asked him anyway. “Does that mean you still want to…?”</p><p>He sighed and replied, “Since you don’t seem to understand my words, I’ll give you a hint.”</p><p>In the next moment, he was standing right up in Kuro’s face with an almost mischievous smile on his lips. Before Kuro could ask him any more questions, he felt a cold hand on his mouth and Shu’s face encompassing his entire field of sight. There was a little sound, as if someone had been kissed, but he only felt the outlines of Shu’s hand.</p><p>“Fufu. Does that answer everything now?</p><p>“Actually… Not really,” he said with full honesty.</p><p>“What, you don’t expect me to kiss you before engagement, do you?”</p><p>Oh, so that’s what he tried to do. But they were already in the privacy of Shu’s bedroom anyways, so Kuro thought traditions be damned, he was going to kiss Shu for real. He wrapped his arms around him, but Shu pushed back against his chest.</p><p>“Ryuukun, can’t you wait,” he said, pouting. “I’ll get my parents’ approval immediately!”</p><p>After that, Shu dragged him through a series of formalities in which he formally rejected Eichi’s offer and amazingly got the blessing from his parents. Throughout it all, Kuro felt like he’d be executed or something, for various reasons including being the reason for said rejection and for the obvious discrepancy in their social status but the process was surprisingly painless.</p><p>It was only a few weeks later that he learned that Prince Eichi’s seemingly random proposal was spurred on by his advisor Wataru, who also happened to be one of Shu’s few friends. He thought the threat of an engagement would encourage Shu to finally confess to Kuro by some twisted logic. And if it didn’t, Eichi would have still secured a decent marriage anyways, so apparently the Tenshouin heir was whimsical enough to follow through with the idea. Reading the letter from Wataru, Shu became so enraged with his friend that he refused to return any of his letters for months. He couldn’t really complain when Wataru’s meddling <i>did</i> help the two of them come together though.</p><p>And finally, with their engagement official and their wedding day set, Shu allowed Kuro to kiss him, very chastely, on the cheek. And nothing more. It honestly drove him a little crazy, but he was more than willing to follow Shu’s pace.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I wanted to write something for Shu's Nocturne costume including Akira's comment on the story ("You idiot! If you use that technique, your lifespan will be shortened!" / "Don't try to stop me, Kiryu! Behold, the Sovereign's brilliant performance!") but it ended up completely different.</p><p>I hope I can make it come true one day. Thank you for reading!</p></blockquote></div></div>
</body>
</html>